


The Aquarium Trip

by lolahardy



Series: Mistakes Made (...then set straight) [111]
Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, M/M, Mpreg, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-21
Updated: 2018-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-22 01:33:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13753449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lolahardy/pseuds/lolahardy
Summary: It's that time of year between the holidays and before school starts up again. It's too cold to play outside to Arthur and Eames take the kids to the aquarium for the day.





	The Aquarium Trip

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by this picture: ([x](https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/lickrock/169198105856))

With a few days left before school started and the weather far too cold for the kids to go outside, Arthur could see them getting antsy. He saw them getting fussy and bored, Edward already starting by wanting to do back flips and handsprings all over the living room. He already knocked into shelves and kicked a few things off and Arthur warned him not to do it, but as children want to do, he stayed still for just a few minutes before he was at it again. Arthur didn’t care about the mess, he just didn’t want his eldest hurting himself.

Briar Rose was no better, dressing up the dogs, her dolls, herself, then getting bored and making messes in her room from tea parties, action figure battles and stuffed animal wars. Arthur knew he had to do something when he caught his children attempting to line a sled up at the top of the stairs to ride it down.

Eames had been watching Phillip and the pups, occasionally stopping Edward from round house kicking the sofa. Arthur approached him and said,

“Let’s go somewhere.”

“Where to, my darling?”

“I don’t know but the kids are going crazy. You know I just stopped them from going down the stairs on their sled?”

Eames laughed.

“You should have let them.”

“And what, break up the day with a mad dash to the emergency room?”

“It would have made the day interesting as well as taught them a valuable lesson.”

Arthur gave his husband a look and said,

“Well not letting our children shatter themselves to pieces, let’s go out somewhere.”

“Art museum?”

“No, Edward doesn’t like the art museum too much.”

“Too bad it’s too cold for the zoo.”

“I got it, the aquarium.”

“Brilliant. Let’s get them ready.”

Arthur agreed.

After everyone was ready and piled into the car, a short trip later and the family was at the aquarium. Edward and Briar Rose were thrilled to be out of the house and entertained and held hands as they walked ahead of their parents. Eames carried Phillip in his kangaroo pouch facing out as he clutched his peacock to him, his eyes wide as he saw the lighted tanks. Arthur pushed the stroller and smiled, looking at his children and then at the tanks, stopping behind the kids when they stopped. Briar Rose turned and looked at Eames saying,

“Dadda look!”

She pointed at the sharks inside, a great white swimming close to the window as Phillip reached out, babbling a little as if in awe. Edward read the plaque with the information to his sister, slowly and carefully sounding out the words. When he finished, Briar Rose seemed more in awe than before and eventually, Edward took her hand and moved them on to the next tank.

They saw tropical fish from all over the word, large and small. They saw sharks and eels and crabs but the best for them was the octopus who was hidden at first, but then put a single tentacle on the glass, Briar Rose squealing in delight as Edward put his hand to the glass, his little palm barely filling one of the suction cups as he said,

“Dad, look! How cool!”

Arthur took a picture as Eames moved closer to Phillip so he could see and he let out a high pitch squeal, delighted as his feet kicked out again and again.

They continued down the halls, seeing the jellyfish display, both kids putting their hands to the glass, amazed at the puffing and moving of the different jellyfish. Edward told Briar Rose the different jellyfish names at the different tanks, pointing out their differences to her so she could know which one was which.

When they got to the touch exhibit, Arthur and Eames watched with delight as a couple of other kids laughed and pointed, chatter among them as Edward was tall enough to reach over the barrier and put his hand in the water, laughing hysterically when he got to touch the stingray that swam under his palm. Briar Rose wanted to reach but was too short so Arthur held her up. She hesitated reaching in, nervous when she saw the stingray, but Edward assured her it was friendly and he put his own hand in the water again, showing her it was okay, so she did too. They both squealed when the stingray splashed at them and Briar Rose got to feel its rubber like texture. The horseshoe crab was next and Briar Rose didn’t hesitate that time, sticking her hand in the water and touching the crab. Even Phillip got in on it, Eames holding Enoch for him as his youngest put his hand in the water, touching the top of the crab. They touched the clearnose skates, similar to stingrays and then the sea stars, Briar Rose amazed at how they felt, bumpy and still soft.

Then there were the seals. Edward and Briar Rose gasped as they saw the seals swimming back and forth, some stopping and showing off for the crowd. Briar Rose ran to Arthur, pulling him close so he could see, Eames standing by Edward so they could all see.

When they got to the coral reefs, Eames knelt down with Phillip to look down and he pointed as he said,

“Look, duckie. A shark!”

Phillip’s feet kicked in delight as he pointed out to the shark, trying to say shark as much as he could and Edward and Briar Rose ran over to look as well. Edward proudly announced,

“It’s a bonnethead shark.”

He pointed to the information display and read that it was a cousin of the hammerhead and is the smallest of the hammerhead family, averaging 30 to 48 inches in length. They saw moray eels, pufferfish and all kinds of coral.

A stop at the gift shop when they were done walking signaled the end of the trip and Arthur was relieved when the kids wanted more books rather than toys, although Phillip did want a pufferfish stuffed animal. In the car on the way home, Briar Rose and Edward had their books opened, pointing out all the pictures to each other, remembering what they saw and what kind of fish they were.

“Dad, we still have to see the mummies!” Said Edward.

“Oh, you’re right sprog. Maybe tomorrow. It’s supposed to be another cold day.” Said Eames as he drove.

Arthur nodded and looked back at the kids, Phillip clutching his toys to himself as Briar Rose held open her book, turning it to Arthur as she said,

“Daddy look! It’s a Dory fish!”

Arthur smiled and said,

“What’s it’s proper name?”

She turned the book back to herself and slowly read it and said,

“A blue…tang!”

“Awesome. Is Nemo in there?”

Briar Rose continued flipping the pages, looking for it as Eames looked at Arthur for a moment and said,

“So, museum of history tomorrow?”

“Seems like it.” 


End file.
